Many people are familiar with the concept of a religious annulment, granted by a church or clergy, which undoes a marriage as if the marriage had never existed. A religious annulment, however, does not affect the legal status of a marriage. The court process of an annulment ends a marriage legally, like a divorce.

The difference between a divorce and a legal annulment is that, while a divorce process divides the divorcing couple’s assets and deals with family consequences of the divorce, an annulment wipes the slate clean in the eyes of the law. No division of assets takes place. Not unlike a religious annulment, it dissolves a marriage as if the spouses had never been married, while a conventional divorce will remain as part of the spouses’ legal records.

In New Hampshire, the grounds for getting an annulment are limited under New Hampshire law, Title XLIII, Chapter 487. The state will grant a legal annulment if your marriage meets one of the conditions for a “prohibited marriage” under the law:

1. A partner or both partners in the marriage are minors (younger than 18 in New Hampshire), and the parent or guardian did not consent to the marriage.
2. The marriage was the result of fraud or lies, and one party feels he or she was deceived into the marriage, or was intimidated by threats.
3. The marriage was illegal under New Hampshire law from the start. For example, the spouses were too closely related, or one spouse was still married to another person. New Hampshire’s laws did not require modification when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that same-sex marriage is legal and protected by the Constitution.

If you wish to pursue an annulment of your marriage in New Hampshire, you must file a “Petition to Annul Marriage,” which can be downloaded from the New Hampshire State Court website. The petition form asks you to provide basic information about yourself, your spouse, your children, your marriage, and your reason for seeking an annulment. Your petition must be “served” to your spouse, meaning that an adult other than yourself must hand-deliver it to your spouse. When you and your spouse agree to the annulment, a judge can grant it without a hearing.

It sounds simple, but an annulment can be tricky to conclude. If one spouse serves the other with a petition to annul, and the other spouse does not agree, the petitioner needs to gather evidence to prove the validity of the petition. This is where you will be wise to seek advice from an experienced family law attorney. A hearing will be scheduled.

When a judge grants an annulment, any children of your annulled marriage remain legitimate.

The seasoned family law and divorce lawyers at the McGrath Law Firm, founded by attorney Peter McGrath, will walk you through every step of the challenging divorce process to address your concerns and achieve your goals as efficiently as possible.  From spousal support, child support, fault, and equitable division of property and debt to valuations, pre-nuptial agreements, annulments, and restraining orders, the experienced attorneys at McGrath Law Firm have a successful track record in all aspects of divorce law. Call us to schedule your consultation at (800) 283-1380.